Blockchain technology boosted the speed of China–Europe rail trade

The Chengdu International Railway Port in Sichuan region was established with the blockchain-powered Sino-Europe Trade Link 2.0 platform by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

As well as cutting down on lengthy process of logistic document checking, the updated system will allow foreign trade companies to raise money directly from the bank to speed up the cash flow.

The place where cargo was delivered from China via rail was used to take over a month to reach the destinations in Europe due to documentation and waybills needed to be checked at every border crossing. The logistics, however, of which were made harder by translation difficulties and bureaucratic hold-ups.

From the first three years and three months of its inception, the China–Europe cargo service completed 200 trips and since the implementation of blockchain technology, the same number of trips were carried out in just two months.

While talking to reporters, an ICBC staff member said that the advantages of the blockchain-enabled system made it a reliable platform for hosting and tracking trade data.

“We take advantage of blockchain’s merits, such as its tamper-proof nature and timestamps, to form reliable trade data. That can greatly improve the financing capabilities of small and medium-sized foreign trade enterprises,” they said.